The files relating to all seven convicts in the former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi assassination case seeking their premature release, had been forwarded by the then Tamil Nadu Governor to the President on January 27, 2021, the Madras High Court was told on Thursday, April 21. The files in question were related to the 2018 state cabinet recommendations on the release of all the seven convicts in the case. The court was considering the writ petition of Nalini Sriharan — one of the seven convicts — seeking release even without the consent of the Governor. Sriharan is currently serving life imprisonment at the Special Prison for Women in Vellore.
On Thursday, Advocate-General (AG) R Shanmugasundaram told the first bench of Chief Justice MN Bhandari and Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy that the convicts’ files seeking premature release were forwarded to the then Governor in January 2021. This submission was in response to a query raised by the bench last week. Presently, Nalini was availing a month's parole, offered by the state government. The bench adjourned the matter till April 25, after directing the AG to ascertain whether Nalini was punished for the offences under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act, or TADA Act.
The previous AIADMK cabinet in September 2018, had passed a resolution and forwarded its recommendation to the then Governor Banwarilal Purohit to order the premature release of all the seven life convicts, under Article 161 of the Constitution. As there was no response from the Governor, Nalini and others had filed several petitions in the High Court for a direction to the Governor to consider their plea, but they were all rejected by the High Court.
Hence, Nalini filed the present writ petition praying the court to order her release even without the consent of the Governor.
The seven convicts serving life imprisonment are Murugan, Santhan, A G Perarivalan, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, Ravichandran and Nalini. In March, Perarivalan was granted bail by the Supreme Court. Rajiv Gandhi was killed in a suicide bomb attack at Sriperumbudur in May 1991.